People love dogs. Pet owners unaware of the dangerous effect of some people food to animals would share whatever they are eating with the pet. A pet owner would wonder why foods that give humans a lot of benefits would be harmful to dogs. Although humans and dogs have similarities in genetics, they differ in so many ways. The inability of a dog’s system to tolerate chocolate is one of these differences. Not many pet owners are aware of the toxic effect of chocolates to their pets. People love chocolates as this comfort food has many benefits for humans. Chocolates and dogs though is a bad combination.

The substance theobromine in chocolate is the reason why this world’s most loved treat is toxic to dogs. Theobromine, a chemical that is similar to caffeine is a naturally occurring substance found in cocoa beans. Theobromine serves as a stimulant and causes frequent urination, affects the kidneys and the heart muscles as well as the central nervous system. The toxic effects of theobromine in dogs is caused by dog’s inability to digest this substance. A dog that continuously ingest small amount of chocolates will eventually develop a variety of medical concerns because the dog’s inability to digest theobromine would result to an accumulation of this toxic substance.

Dog owners can share the chocolate bar with the pet or allow the dog to have a slice of the Black Forest cake. No signs of poisoning will be noticed if the dog has consumed small amount of chocolate. Chocolate is dose dependent meaning that a dog has to ingest about 100 to 150 milligrams per kilogram of dog body weight before the toxicity level can be reached. Different types of chocolates have different toxicity levels. Because white chocolates is low in theobromine content, the toxicity level is also low. About 200 ounces of white chocolates must be consumed before signs of chocolate poisoning will be seen. Milk chocolates and semi-sweet chocolates contains more of toxic substance thus a substantial amount consumed will be dangerous to the pet. The baking chocolate is considered to be the most dangerous among all types of chocolates. Dog owners don’t normally give the dog baking chocolate but knowing the voracious appetite of these animals, it is still possible for the dog to gorge on the dangerous food. This situation calls for immediate treatment to save the life of the pet. It is always good to know what to do if your dog has eaten chocolate.